Can we leave gender role stereotypes on history's scrap heap?

In 2026, men will take parental leave, push strollers, and pursue careers in caregiving, according to a commentary piece that challenges rigid gender stereotypes. The author, Per Aage Pleym Christensen, critiques the notion of "feminine masculinity" as applied to the Norwegian men's national football team.

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The young men do not hesitate to embrace each other. Such a thing sends a signal to young boys in Norwegian schoolyards. When Norway's toughest men can show affection, then anyone can do it.

Christensen references a critique by Synnøve Vereide Trampe in Aftenposten, which described the team's "viking aesthetic" and their on-field camaraderie as "feminine masculinity." Trampe noted the positive signal sent when "Norway's toughest men can show affection, then anyone can do it." The commentary also cites Swedish feminist Ulrika Fåhraeus, who observed that the team's "masculinity" was only celebrated once they displayed traits typically associated with "soft and feminine values."

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This is the kind of masculinity the world needs.

The core of Christensen's argument is a challenge to the idea that care, empathy, and emotions are inherently feminine. The piece asserts that in recent decades, the traditional male role has expanded beyond its previously narrow confines. It poses the question: "Can we soon move away from the idea that emotions are something feminine? Can we not let the stereotypes about gender roles be left on the scrap heap of history?"

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Ironically, one might say. Only when the national team players showed qualities typically associated with soft and feminine values was their 'masculinity' celebrated.